What Happened To Iran's Enriched Uranium?

**Mike Baker** (0:12)
It's Thursday, the 4th of June. Welcome to The Presidents Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First up, American and Israeli strikes may have damaged Iran's nuclear facilities, but of course, one critical question remains unanswered. Where is Tehran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium?
Now, where did we put that uranium? Later in the show, Russia's billionaires are discovering that their fortunes may no longer be safe, as Vladimir Putin moves to bring more of the country's economy under Kremlin control. Well, once a communist, always a communist. Plus, Ukraine launches a large-scale drone attack targeting St. Petersburg, just as Russia's annual economic forum, often called Putin's Davos, gets underway. And in today's Back of the Brief, federal prosecutors say a California businessman, a dual U.S.-Iranian tech bro, spent years helping Iran acquire sensitive American technology destined for the regime's nuclear program. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
Last year, as you likely recall, Israel launched a series of strikes against Iran's nuclear program during that 12-day war. The conflict culminated with Operation Midnight Hammer, when American B-2 bombers and submarine-launched missiles struck key nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.
Then this year, Iranian nuclear sites were targeted once again during Operation Epic Freedom.
Now the strikes, of course, damaged some of Iran's most important nuclear facilities. But exactly how much was destroyed and what may have survived underground, that remains a matter of debate. Initial comments from the White House and Pentagon declared the regime's nuclear program obliterated or decimated. It all sounds grand, but later bomb damage assessments have been less optimistic. Today, one of the biggest unanswered questions concerns Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium. According to a new report from the New York Times, the fate of that uranium has become one of the central issues in ongoing negotiations, well, such as they are, between Washington and Tehran. And it may help explain why the Trump administration is now placing so much emphasis on diplomacy, rather than resuming significant additional military action.
The reason is relatively simple. Damaging or degrading nuclear facilities, and actually eliminating a nuclear threat, are of course not the same thing. Before the 12-day war, Iran possessed roughly 970 pounds of enriched uranium up to 60% purity, according to estimates from the International Atomic Energy Agency. Now, that's below the roughly 90% enrichment level that's generally associated with weapons-grade uranium, but it is alarmingly close. Experts estimate that stockpile could potentially provide enough material for at least 10 nuclear weapons, if further enriched. And the enrichment process to get from 60% to weapons-grade is, relatively speaking, much easier and quicker than the process to get from the beginning to that 60% level. And unlike a large enrichment facility, that amount of uranium doesn't require an enormous warehouse. According to the New York Times, the material can be stored in containers roughly the size of scuba tanks, making it possible, of course, to move, conceal, and disperse among multiple locations. And that reality has created a major challenge. Military planners can target centrifuge halls and enrichment plants, tunnel entrances, ventilation shafts, and power systems. But locating a relatively small quantity of nuclear material hidden somewhere inside a country the size of Iran is obviously a far more difficult task. The leading suspect remains a massive underground complex near the city of Isfahan. According to Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, much of Iran's enriched uranium is believed to be stored somewhere beneath a mountain near the Isfahan nuclear complex. The facility is buried deep underground and may lie beyond the reach of even America's most powerful bunker buster bombs. Recent satellite imagery reviewed by analysts appears to show fresh earthworks, newly constructed barriers, buried tunnel entrances, and other defensive measures around the site. Some observers believe those changes may reflect an effort by Iran to harden the facility against future attacks or perhaps against any attempt to seize the material stored inside. Analysts also point to imagery captured before the 12-day war, showing what appeared to be a cargo truck parked near one of the tunnel entrances. Now, some experts believe the vehicle may have been transporting nuclear material, though others caution that there's no definitive proof of what it was carrying. And Isfahan isn't the only possibility. A smaller portion of the uranium stockpile may be located at Natanz. That's Iran's largest enrichment facility. Nearby sits another site known as Pickaxe Mountain, an underground complex that has reportedly been under construction for years. Satellite imagery suggests work has continued there even after repeated Israeli and American strikes, with new entrances, reinforced structures, and expanded security measures visible in recent months.
Fordo remains another possibility, though it suffered significant damage during Operation Midnight Hammer. Even there, however, uncertainty remains. While the strikes may have severely damaged the facility itself or entrances to the facility, experts can't say with confidence whether any enriched uranium was present when the bombs fell.